The Global Burden of Liver Disease

Chronic liver disease (CLD) and its associated complications (cirrhosis and liver cancer) cause significant mortality, morbidity, and economic burden. Published data from the World Health Organization and/or the Global Burden of Disease show that the burden of CLD is large and increasing, primarily owing to the increasing burden of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and alcohol-related liver disease (ALD). Middle Eastern, Northern African, and Asian regions of the globe are most affected by hepatitis B and hepatitis C virus. Furthermore, Middle Eastern and North African regions also are affected by nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and Eastern European, West African, and Central Asian regions are affected by ALD. In this context, the rate of increase for cirrhosis is highest in the Middle East, as well as in middle high and high sociodemographic index (SDI) regions. On the other hand, the highest SDI countries are experiencing increasing rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Assessing HCC burden based on country and etiology shows that China, Korea, India, Japan, and Thailand have the highest hepatitis B virus–related HCC cases, while China, Japan, and the United States have the highest hepatitis C virus–related HCC cases. Additionally, the United States has the highest ALD-related HCC cases, while India, the United States, and Thailand have the highest nonalcoholic steatohepatitis–related HCC cases. Although the burden of CLD is increasing globally, regions of the world are impacted differently as a result of a number of sociodemographic factors.